This post has been through a number of revisions of the years. A few little changes to the recipe as my style of making it changes, as well as additional information added for those who want to know a little bit more about the dish. You can jump ahead to the recipe and video below, but if you want to read on I’ve now included a bit of background on one of Southeast Asia’s most influential dishes.

For those new to it, Hainanese Chicken Rice is a dish primarily attributed to Malaysia and Singapore although versions exist in Thailand (khao man gai) Vietnam (com ga) and Indonesia as well. It was created by migrants from the island of Hainan in China’s far south who arrived in Southeast Asia around the turn of the 20th century. My family is Hainanese, and my grandfather arrived in Malaysia from Hainan in around 1915.

The dish itself is based on a traditional Hainanese delicacy called Wenchang chicken. Specific free-roaming chickens from the Hainanese town of Wenchang are fed on peanut bran, coconut and various other things and they are famed for their generous fat, flavourful meat and tender skin. The most prized birds are the capons, huge 3-4 kilogram castrated roosters with incredible flavour. On Hainan, the Wenchang chickens are usually boiled just in salted water with the pure flavour of the bird itself. It’s then served with a sauce of some kind, which can vary from establishment to establishment. One popular sauce is made from salt-fermented crushed yellow chillies. The orange-coloured ginger and chilli sauce served with Hainanese chicken rice in Southeast Asia is an adaptation of this.

Wenchang chickens on Hainan.

Cooked Wenchang chicken as served in Haikou, Hainan.

Of course, the dish is Hainanese chicken rice is very different from its origins in Wenchang chicken. The elements are generally (1) free-range or kampong chicken poached in a broth This recipe is my own, a combination of what I learned from my Hainanese grandmother (my grandfather passed away before I was born), my Singaporean-English mother, and my elderly cousin who ran a very popular chicken rice stall in Singapore for more than 40 years (it’s now closed).

I’ve written about Hainanese Chicken Rice for the Wall Street Journal (Chicken Rice for the Soul) and published versions of this recipe in two of my six cookbooks (my grandmother’s “Original Recipe” in Two Asian Kitchens) as well as this updated and version which appears in my latest book Destination Flavour: People and Places, which is a combination of recipes from my SBS television series of the same name.

Method

For the ginger and spring onion oil, pound the ginger and salt to a rough paste with a heatproof mortar and pestle. Add the spring onion and pound lightly to combine. Heat the peanut oil in a small frypan until it is smoking then pour the hot oil over the ginger mixture. Stir, then set aside until ready to serve.

For the chilli sauce, pound the chilli, ginger, garlic, sugar and salt together in a mortar and pestle until very smooth. Pounding chilli can take some time so to speed up the process you can start it in a blender or food processor and pound to finish, or grate the ingredients into the mortar using a rasp grater. Add the boiling stock to the pounded mixture. You can vary the amount of stock depending on the consistency of the chilli sauce you’re after. Stir in the juice, then adjust the seasoning if necessary so that the balance of sweet, sour and salty tastes is pleasant. Heat the chicken oil in a small saucepan until hot, the pour over the chilli mixture and stir to combine.

Remove the fat deposits from inside the cavity of the chicken, near the tail. Roughly chop the fat and place in a small frying pan over very low heat to render. Render the chicken fat, stirring occasionally for about an hour until you all the fat is rendered and the solids are crisp. Remove the solids and use them for another purpose. Reserve the chicken oil.

To begin poaching the chicken, pound the unpeeled ginger in a mortar and pestle and add to a large pot containing about 4 litres of water, along with the tops of the spring onions used for the ginger and spring onion oil. Add the salt and MSG or chicken stock powder (if using) and bring to the boil over high heat. Taste the water and adjust the amount of salt so that it tastes savoury and a little salty. Reduce the heat to very low and add the chicken to the pot. There should be enough water in the pot so that the chicken doesn’t touch the bottom of the pot, as that will cause the skin to tear. Lift the chicken in and out of the water a couple of times to change the liquid in the chicken’s cavity. If you have poultry hooks, use them to hang the chickens in the pot (see video below). The water should now be steaming but not bubbling. Keep the heat low at this level and cook the chicken for 45 minutes.

Using the poultry hook (or slotted ladle), carefully lift the chicken out of the pan, ensuring you don’t break the skin, and plunge into a large bowl or sink of salted iced water. Reserve the stock and stand the chicken in the iced water for at least 10 minutes, turning once. This will stop the cooking and give the skin its delicious gelatinous texture. Remove from the iced water and hang over a bowl or the sink to drain well. Rub the skin all over with the sesame oil. The chicken should be cooked very lightly, pink inside the bones and with a gelatinous skin.

To make the chicken rice, pound the garlic and eschallot (or onion) to roughly bruise with a mortar and pestle. Combine the rendered chicken oil with vegetable oil to make ½ a cup of oil. Heat in a wok over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger stir until starting to brown, then strain through a sieve. Reserve the oil and discard the solids. Place the rice in a rice cooker or heavy-based saucepan. Add about 1.2L of the reserved stock from the chicken (strained) and the reserved flavoured chicken oil (or use the proportions as indicated on your rice cooker). Tie the pandan leaves in a knot (if using) and add to the rice. If cooking in a pot, bring to the boil over high heat and continue to boil for about 5 minutes until the level of the liquid reaches the top of the rice, then reduce the heat to very low, cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and cook for 12 minutes, then remove from the heat and stand for another 10 minutes.

For the dressing, combine the ingredients with about half a cup of the stock from cooking the chicken. When the rice is ready, use a cleaver to slice and debone the chicken Chinese-style and pour the dressing over it. Scatter with the coriander sprigs, and serve with sliced cucumber, tomato and serve with the rice and sauces.

Family-style chicken rice.

Key Tips for Hainanese Chicken Rice

The key to this whole dish is seasoning the stock. If you find the stock, chicken, rice or sauces taste a little insipid, it is because the stock is not correctly seasoned. Taste the stock after cooking the chicken, it should taste like a strongly savoury chicken stock. If it tastes weak, add a little more salt. You can also boost it with a dash of fish sauce if you like, or some MSG if you are not opposed to it. Alternatively, do as I mention in the video and cook 2 chickens at once.

Please don’t overcook the chicken. A slow, gentle simmer for 45 minutes will produce chicken with a very pale pink blush to the meat and the inside of the thigh bones should be bright pink. If they are brown or grey the chicken is over cooked. That’s OK, but the texture will not quite be right.

Often in Singapore this will be served with thick black cooking caramel or kecap manis over the chicken, but I prefer the sesame dressing included here.

When making the chilli sauce, look for the colour of the sauce, rather than following the recipe exactly. It should be a bright orange, and that colour will give you a good indication of the proportion of chilli to ginger and garlic. The heat of the sauce should depend on the kind of chillies used, not the amount. The flavour of chilli in this sauce is more important than the heat.

This recipe appears in my new cookbook, Destination Flavour: People and Places (2018) which follows my travels across my SBS television series of the same name. The book covers Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Singapore and China.

Share This :

Tags :

80 Comments

May Mak Says

RK Says

18 July 2012

My wife loves chicken and rice, she used to visit me in Singapore, and when you’re in Singapore you eat our all the time. Now that we’re in Australia, I’ll have to create this dish for her, and surprise it to her on a roadside!

My cousin and I really enjoyed this recipe though the flavour could probably have been slightly stronger (ie. i thought it was a tad mild). I followed the measurements pretty closely – is there some way to make the flavour of the chicken stock a little more intense? Would boiling it longer or letting some liquid boil off do the trick? Or perhaps adding more garlic/ginger? Thanks! 🙂

adamliaw Says

21 July 2012

Hi Sophia,

There should be enough flavour in the recipe as it is, but generally if you find that the flavour of a dish needs a bit more punch just check to make sure you’ve seasoned it correctly – that it’s salty enough. Salt intensifies flavours so that may be your problem.

If you want a stronger flavoured stock (again, it should be fine just as it is if it’s correctly seasoned), I’d suggest adding more chicken to deepen the flavour. My grandma sometimes makes a “double boiled” stock, which is to say that she will cook one chicken in water to produce the first stock, then remove the first chicken and cook another one in the same stock. Of course, with this you end up with twice as much chicken too.

A lot of the strong flavour of Hainanese chicken rice comes from the condiments – the sesame/soy dressing, the chilli sauce and the ginger spring onion sauce. The chicken and rice should be very fragrant and tasty, but not overpoweringly strong with flavour themselves.

van Says

24 January 2013

Hi Adam,
I have the same issue as well with the stock being very weak tasting. Not at all what i am used to getting from the local Malaysian hawker.
Can i suggest that the perhaps the recipe needs to give the exact amount of water needed to cook the chicken in to make the stock.
Every kitchen will have different sized pots, so the amount of water needed to cover a chicken would vary substantially which therefore would affect the intensity of the stock. Luke Nguyen for all of his stocks for Pho and any of the other noodle soups gives exact measurements for all ingredients used including the amount of water added to make up the stock. His recipes are fool-proof.
The other components of this recipe work out wonderfully. I would love and appreciate it if you could test this recipe again to ensure that it works out for all kitchens.
Thanks, Van. xx

adamliaw Says

24 January 2013

Hi Van,

Thanks for the feedback and really sorry it didn’t work out for you!

Most of the Malaysian hawker places will use quite a bit of MSG in their stock (ajinomoto, vetsin or chicken powder) to strengthen the flavour. You can add a teaspoon of that to the stock while cooking if you like, but I prefer not to. There’s nothing wrong with it, but that’s just my personal preference in terms of flavour.

The recipe has been tested literally hundreds of times and is fine for almost any amount of water in any domestic pot, although obviously the stock will be stronger the less you use. I use about 2L of water in a 5L pot generally and most domestic pots will be around the same size. The recipe would even be fine in a 10L pot (although a little weak in the stock) which is really about the limit for domestic pots.

If you’re finding the stock weak for your taste, my suggestions would be (in order of preference):

1. Make sure the stock is seasoned correctly. (I’m almost certain this is your problem.)
2. Use an older chicken, which will give more flavour to the stock.
3. Double boil. (i.e. cook 2 chickens one after the other.)
4. Add MSG.

I have yet to try your recipe but I have made chicken rice (with roasted chicken) numerous times.

With the stock, my trick is to get a chicken carcass from my local butcher (only cost 50 cents or sometimes nothing at all) and slowly simmer it for at least an hour. A dash of white pepper will also give the stock a lovely boost.

A good amount of salt for both the stock and chicken is definitely paramount!

bernie Says

Valeria Says

23 July 2012

hi Adam…
gee, thanks for the amazing recipes….I’ve been cooking Hainan chicken rice for quite sometimes, and usually *following my mum’s* we only fry the soy sauce as dressing for the chicken, and wow it’s way too salty…now I got the correct dressing taste from you..thank you very much, as I love chicken rice so much, I always ask for extra dressing and ginger oil, now I can make those my own… 😀 tho my hubby doesn’t really dig into ginger, but I still can serve the dressing than just plain chicken..Thank you again… 😀

Lem Tay Says

27 August 2012

Want a more intense tasting soup? Try adding a little “Tianjin Preserved Radish” (these come in a brown stoneware crock) and shredded wombok. I especially recommend the wombok as this balances an otherwise rather meat-and-rice heavy meal.

Angie Siebert Says

22 October 2012

I have tried many chicken rice recipes and your recipe (grandmas) is by far the best I have ever made. When my parents visit me in WA they bug me to make it for them, my parents rarely go for seconds but when I make this dish they eat till there is nothing left. Haha. Thank god for Adam!

Lisa Says

Johnh Says

02 April 2013

Thank you, Adam for your recipe. My family loves Hainanese chicken rice and I have tried various recipes from different websites and also had different tips from friends and family. However, the timing and the way you poach the chicken is spot on in your recipe! I tried plastic wrapping the chicken after poaching but that didn’t work too well for me as it ended up “cooking” the chicken further as it was still hot. I combined another popular tip of leaving the chicken in iced water for about 10 minutes. It was near perfect! The skin ended up firm and gelatinous.. the breast meat was so tender! I never had so much compliments from my family! It’s definitely a 10/10 from us!

adamliaw Says

12 May 2013

Hi Nessy,

Yes, there would be a difference in flavour with a corn-fed chicken, but actually I wouldn’t recommend it for this dish.

Corn-fed hens usually have very yellow fat and because the fat is used in this dish it will leave the skin and also the rice with a yellowish tinge. It won’t taste bad, but it might just look a bit funny.

Luke Says

11 July 2013

Finally made this after having your cookbook for almost two years! It’s fantastic, as are the other recipes I’ve tried.
I’m just wondering if you could give me a quick rundown of how to slice the chicken Chinese style. I had a look around the web and found conflicting methods.

All using a heavy cleaver.
1. Place bird breast up and halve along the cartilage and spine.
2. Removing wing and trim and discard any neck.
3. Remove Maryland (drumstick and thigh) from crown (breast on bone) at the joint.
4. Split crown to remove breast meat and cartilage from spine.
5. Chop spine portion into even pieces.
6. Remove tenderloin from breast and chop tenderloin into even pieces.
7. Chop breast into even pieces.
8. Chop wings into even pieces (or segment at the joints).
9. Chop thigh and leg into even pieces.

You don’t need to be too fussy about whether or not you’re doing it right. In fact, after a few times you’ll probably develop your own style that leads to the types of pieces you like to eat.

I remember the first time I asked my grandma how to cut a cooked chicken she just looked at me and said, “You just cut it! What’s the big deal?!” 🙂

Adam. This. Dish. Is. Superb. I made it last night. And, although I skipped the fat rendering part, I managed to produce some pretty killer flavours. The condiments are a must. Can’t believe how simple but effective the spring onion and ginger oil component is?! Your grandma certainly knows her stuff.
I second your call on the double-boiled stock option. I used some leftover homemade chicken stock to cook the chicken in this time around and the flavour was primo. And I love the resting method. It makes for some very succulent meat.
A further tip: for those who might think making chicken stock at home is too much fuss to bother with, I recommend the following cost-effective method. We rarely buy chicken in parts these days. Mostly we buy a whole free range chicken and then butcher it ourselves. It’s just the two of us at home, so we’ll often use the Marylands and wings for mini roasts or dishes like this one, then we freeze the breasts for cooking another night (or vice versa). The carcass is boiled up while cooking the first chicken dish, then cooled and frozen for a later date. I’m constantly finding containers of stock in the freezer! On nights when we’re short on time, my husband will often poach the breasts in a bit of gingered water and soy, with some fresh spring onion and beans, silken tofu and rice with our favourite chilli oil served on the side. Super fast and delicious. Then you STILL have another night to use the original stock in whatever dish you fancy! Three meals and counting. Not bad for a $10 chook! (Probably learned that from MY grandmother!)

adamliaw Says

26 July 2013

Thanks for your comment, Jo.

I never buy chicken pieces either. You get more variety and quality from breaking down a whole bird and it’s much cheaper to boot.

I also debone the legs into leg/thigh fillets (in a lot of Chinese cooking the drumstick meat and thigh fillet is kept together as one cut off the bone) and throw the thigh and leg bones into the stock.

I made this dish tonight and it was a hit with the hubby. My only query was in regards to the way the chicken was cooked. When i cooked it as suggested by you, when i pierced the skin after removing from the water for 30 mins, it still seemed fairly under cooked. I’m under the impression that you shouldn’t eat poultry unless it is fully cooked…what is your thought on this? I cooked the chicken for a little longer with a meat thermometer but found the breast too tough.

adamliaw Says

24 August 2013

Hi Alice,

The key to cooking the chicken is to cook it gently. If it’s overcooked or cooked too quickly it is likely to be tough, so you really need to allow it to rest well. As the chicken rests, first in the hot stock and also when it’s wrapped in cling film later, it will continue to cook so you need to give it time for that to happen.

I don’t mind my chicken slightly pink in the flesh, but I understand a lot of people for cultural reasons want the chicken to be completely cooked through, so that’s what I’ve tried to provide in this recipe.

With proper boiling, waiting and resting the ideal result for this chicken is that it is cooked but pink inside the bones, and perhaps with the very slightest, almost imperceptible blush of pink at the thickest part of the breast.

With differences in birds, pots and stoves there will always be some slight variations in cooking times, but that just-barely-cooked chicken is definitely what you should be looking for with this dish.

Cheryl Says

Thank you very much for this classic recipe. Made it tonight and it was excellent! My Hainanese (Malaysian) husband was a happy man.

Sorry if this is a stupid question, do you wash the rice before frying it up and cooking it?

(BTW we are so glad about your success. My parents are friends with Aunty Tee Lee and I clerked at Kelly & Co when you were there. Please open your Sydney restaurant soon so we can all come and visit it!)

Shafei Says

13 October 2013

Hi Adam, what a great recipe. I’ve cooked the SBS version for a couple of years now but this kicks it out of the park.

Just reading through some of the comments I thought I’d add my two cents – for those who find the flavour kick not strong enough I’d recommend using fresh free range chicken and I season the water with salt when poaching the chicken. My mum also taught me to rinse the chicken with cold water once you take it out of the water or to put it straight into the freezer. It tightens the skin and makes it easier to cut up.

Linda Says

Anita Says

20 April 2014

Dear Adam,

I just wanted to say “thank you, thank you and thank you to you and your gramda for this great recipe”. Hainanese chicken has always been a favourite of mine – which, up to the time I bought your book, I had to resort to the bought kind. While good enough to get me hooked – it always contained MSG – not good for me. Now, armed with your book, I always make Hainanese chicken when we go to our holiday house – you are responsible for a new tradition. Today I happen to have forgotten the book, so searched the internet hoping to find your recipe to confirm a couple of details. Having found it, and seen all these comments, I felt compelled to say thank you. We follow your career with great interest and we loved your show too. Congratulations on your success, you deserve it and more, Anita

Joolz Says

27 June 2014

Cooked your Grandma’s recipe last night! Fabulous and very authentic, took my husband and I back to Singapore and Malaysia where we had this dish the first time.. Just a question though: Do you rinse the rice before cooking it in the chicken fat?
Thanks for your reply
from very happy consumers 😀

Stephanie Says

13 August 2014

I followed this recipe almost to a T and it was truly amazing, and comparable with Hainanese Chicken Rice I’ve had in Singapore and at my usual favourite South East Asian eateries here in NZ. Actually, it was waaaay better than comparable: it was AWESOME. It took me around 2 hours from start to finish, but it was totally worth it. The chilli sauce and spring onion garlic oil work so well with the chicken and the rice. I found the amount of salt perfect. I can’t understand why restaurants bother with msg when this recipe can produce something with such tasty flavours. My boyfriend and I look forward to eating this for lunch again tomorrow :D. Thanks Adam for this epic recipe. Am so glad I found it – I might have to buy your cookbook: for me and my mum and maybe some friends too.

Salve Says

Skate Hudson Says

24 March 2015

Must not forget that the beauty of this dish is it’s delicate flavours. The broth was perfect, and a little soy and sesame rubbed over the chicken before serving more than enough flavour. Best Hainanese chicken recipe.

Mei Yan Says

24 April 2015

I tried this recipe out for the 1st time about 2 years ago and served it to my friends – Malaysians and Australians all loved it and I had nothing left by the end! This is a fantastic recipe that I keep coming back to and prompted me to buy your recipe books (which are filled with more amazing recipes!). Keep up the great work!

Somna Says

08 August 2015

I’ve just made the Chicken Rice and follow every step of this recipes from the beginning to the last. It’s taste fantastic, the whole family really enjoy it, rice, ginger chilli sauce, dressing oil, chicken especially soup. Unforgettable meal, thanks for the recipes.

Shienna Mae Says

07 March 2016

Lived in Malaysia for 3 years and I have a high expectation when it comes to chicken rice.Im not Malaysian Im not Chinese either,Im Filipino.Luckily I tried this last Saturday and it was great,well yeah minus the MSG they use back in Malaysia the chicken is a little bland but it is not hard to put a little bit of salt while poaching the chicken.And also the sauces brings out the taste in the chicken.Rice taste great.Chilli sauce to die for.Over all Im very satisfied and happy.Thank you for the recipe.My Australian husband was impressed.

Rahel Says

10 May 2016

Hi Adam, I grew up in Malaysia and this is one of my all time favourites!! Really looking forward to trying it out. I was just wondering if you have any advice about poaching the chicken in a slow cooker?

Kobe Says

Thank you for this amazing recipe. I undercooked the chicken but already brushed it with sesame oil, so I just put it back in the pot and it actually turned out so flavourful and tender. The family love it!

JL KL Says

26 February 2017

I’m of Malaysian Chinese decent living in Australia, and literally grew up with this dish. Whenever home sickness sets in, this dish was the cure. Over ten years I’ve been cooking this dish with countless renditions that came close, but not quite the real deal I remember from home.

Tried out your instructions and recipe today and FINALLY… Home!

I understand some may have commented about blandness and lack of punch, but I like to share the hidden brilliance I’ve found in this recipe that made the world of difference between the past ten years and what this recipe helped put up today.

1. No ounce of salt added to the chicken until right befor serving-
For fear of lacking punch, ive always added salt to the stock while poaching, and for reasons unknown, the delicate natural flavour of the chicken gets lost in the stock. While counter intuitively without any salt, the chicken retained its sweetness and texture after poaching. I may never know why…

2. Below boiling 20mins, off heat, cover and poach 30.
This process not only ensured a perfectly cooked chook, but also prevented the skin from breaking apart from overheating in boiling water! Brilliant.

3. Brushed sesame oil and PLASTIC wrapped resting/cooldown!!!
I have never done this in the past, but can now understand why it is such a crucial kung fu secret in that it kept the skin of the chicken as smoooth as silk rather than drying out through its own steam during resting.

4. Ginger and spring onion condiment.
Folowed this to the T and OMG… how is this recipe so different from the many microprocessed versions Ive done in the past? I even used spring onion that was on the verge of sprouting and it still kicked ass! Grandma sure knows the value in “slow work producing delicate results”.. i think the coase grind and infusing hit the perfect balance. Unreal. And oh yes, the condiment is to this chicken as what oxygen is to breathing. Its really the final hit of flavour that seals this dish.

In closing, I’m truly appreciative that Adam has disclosed such closely guarded secrets to a great Hainanese chicken rice to people like me. Many Hainanese Chicken rice hawkers will not be too thrilled to learn that their dish can now be easily recreated at home thanks to Adam.

This dish is simple yet extremely complex to master. A fitting peasant dish that had once made it to the grand finals of Masterchef Australia, and continue to thwart the most seasoned of home cooks out there! No longer!

Melissa Says

24 March 2017

This was delicious! I have moved recently to USA and have had to start learning the malaysian street food so I don’t get depressed! The dish was so easy to make and tasted authentic the only problem I had was I felt everything could have used a little more salt but that could just be me 🙂 will definitely be printing out this recipe!

Maggie Says

10 April 2017

I used to live in Singapore and spent a lot of time searching for the best Hainanese Chicken rice. It was a labour of love because even the worst would have some redeeming quality, and the best was more comforting than a mother’s hug.
Now I live in country Victoria and it might as well be Mars when it comes to finding authentic Asian dining, so I’ve had to satisfy the craving by trialling numerous recipes in search of the elusive subtlety which characterises this dish.
This recipe nails it. The seasoning is perfect, but do not skimp on the condiments – they are as essential to the dish as chicken is.
Profound thanks 🙂

1970 Queen of Mean Says

Fran Says

27 August 2017

The condiments make this dish, and I’ve used this recipe many times & it’s worked well. However the broth was somewhat disappointing, but Adam’s hints above made all the difference! Well-seasoned, the both is delicious! no need for msg or other flavour enhancers. I poured a little of the seasoned juices back into the pot with the broth. Leftover carcass and condiments added to the leftover broth means I’ll have a tasty soup tomorrow as well 🙂

Nina Says

22 October 2017

Thank you so so much for sharing this very authentic recipe, which has become my go-to recipe whenever we crave for this dish. To address what other commenters said about the broth being “weak”, I simply make a separate chicken broth (with leftover bones or supermarket-bought necks or wings) and add this to the stock from the poached chicken. Such a simple, flavorful and satisfying chicken dish!

Mai Ito Says

stef Says

03 January 2019

Hi Adam, I’m going to try your version of Hainanese Chicken Rice, I’ve always tried my mums version, will let you know how it goes. One question i do have is where can i get those poultry hooks from? I’ve looked online but can’t find them anywhere.

Chloe Says

Inem Ngepel Says

02 March 2019

Love the video that you suggested. I have to play and pause it and re-play it while chopping the chicken in the same time. My chicken looks so messy LOL. I’m using cleaver however i guess it’s not sharp and heavy enough to make a clean cut.

Thanks for the recipe. It’s amazing !!!! I added 0.5 kg chicken feet to enhance the flavour while simmering the chicken. Turn out cheaper then using 2 whole chickens.

Java Says

04 March 2019

Hi Adam,

Thank you for this recipe. I followed the measurements pretty closely and it was a success. I used young ginger instead and it was so delicious and extremely fragrant. I also added glutinous rice (soaked overnight) on the jasmine rice. Thanks again.

Penang girl Says

I didn’t buy scallions and used one (white) onion instead, and added carrots to boil in the stock as I love carrot.
After chicken is cooked, dissected and some stock added to rice, I place the chicken frame back to the stock to boil further. We had flavoursome soup to go with our chic and rice. No MSG at all.

Jan Says

Tina G Says

02 July 2019

Hi Adam,

Thank you so much for your recipe. I made it for potluck tonight. I followed your instruction exactly. It came out perfect chicken’s so tender and juicy. The rice’s aromatic. The condiments are savory. Everyone loves it. No left over. I can’t thank you enough.

TinaG Says

02 July 2019

Hi Adam,

Thank you so much for your recipe. I made it for potluck tonight. I followed your instruction exactly. It came out perfect chicken’s so tender and juicy. The rice’s aromatic. The condiments are savory. Everyone loves it. No left over. I can’t thank you enough.

Phil Says

05 September 2019

Hi Adam, thanks for the great recipe! Made it this weekend and it was great but…there is a but, not as great as what I’ve had in Singapore and I think the secret may lie in what you said in one of your earlier comment. You like slightly pinker chicken but, for cultural reasons, many prefer chicken cooked through and this recipe provides for that.

So, real talk, when you make this for your family, how long do you actually leave it in and/or what temperature do you cook at? I think there are two issues at play, temperature and length of time. Given my first time I left it at just below a normal (by western standards) simmer with barely a bubble here or there for exactly 45minutes then plunged in ice water etc. I stuck my thermometer in a few times during just to make sure it wasnt approaching boiling and registered 180-190ish degrees every now and then. But in my quest for great chicken rice I found another recipe that suggests keeping the chicken between 165-170 degrees for 35-40 and that the water should be completely still but steaming. Chicken is taken out when it registers at 165 degrees.

I plan on trying that next time but was wondering what you do given your clear love of chicken rice, rich chicken rice heritage and awesome instructions.

Thanks again, this was by far the best and clearest recipe I’ve found in my quest and I’ve since subscribed to your channel and discovered lots of other great recipes in the process. (I highly recommend the Mulligatawny soup to anyone reading this)

Phil Says

06 September 2019

Hi Adam, thanks for the great recipe! Made it this weekend and it was great but…there is a but, not as great as what I’ve had in Singapore and I think the secret may lie in what you said in one of your earlier comment. You like slightly pinker chicken but, for cultural reasons, many prefer chicken cooked through and this recipe provides for that.

So, real talk, when you make this for your family, how long do you actually leave it in and/or what temperature do you cook at? I think there are two issues at play, temperature and length of time. Given my first time I left it at just below a normal (by western standards) simmer with barely a bubble here or there for exactly 45minutes then plunged in ice water etc. I stuck my thermometer in a few times during just to make sure it wasnt approaching boiling and registered 190ish degrees every now and then. But in my quest for great chicken rice I found another recipe that suggests keeping the chicken between 165-170 degrees for 35-40 min and that the water should be completely still but steaming. Chicken is taken out when it registers at 165 degrees.

I plan on trying that next time but was wondering what you do given your clear love of chicken rice, rich chicken rice heritage and awesome instructions.

Thanks again, this was by far the best and clearest recipe I’ve found in my quest and I’ve since subscribed to your channel and discovered lots of other great recipes in the process. (I highly recommend the Mulligatawny soup to anyone reading this)